About

Storywriting School is a learning community for people who dream of writing great stories... but end up getting stuck.

Sounds familiar? If that's anything like you, then you‘ve visited the right website. We're here to give you the tools to get your story written. Yes, you could see that story idea through, even if it's been lying dormant in your brain cells for over a decade now.

You're not one of those naturally-gifted writers you say? We aren't, either. But we've come up with storywriting methods that have, through the years, helped demolish many a writer's block. We believe that while some people might have the inherent knack for writing stories, the rest of us can still learn it—and with practice, create great stories that uplift our readers.

What are your offerings?

What kind of people attend your courses and join your communities?

We get all kinds: artists, accountants, students, teachers, film geeks, freelance writers, parents, producers, etc. Their common ground is that they love stories. Our participants are often avid readers who appreciate a good narrative and therefore want to write their own as well.

Many parents have asked us if we welcome children in our courses. We answer with a resounding, "yes!" Kids as young as eight have thrived in our courses and have even done better than adults. It's likely because they haven't developed bad habits that grown ups have to unlearn. That said, please ask your child if he/she really wants to learn to write stories. Storywriting should be an enjoyable activity—not something you feel forced to do!

Who are the people behind Storywriting School?

Joem Antonio (Founder, Content Creator, and Teacher)

Joachim Emilio B. Antonio is a teacher by profession, a writer on occasion, a scholar by passion, and a writing teacher by vocation. He received his M.A. in Humanities with Specialization in History from the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P), his Ph.D. in Creative Writing from the University of the Philippines, Diliman (UP), and is currently teaching Humanities, Literature, and Theatre Arts in the UA&P.

Joem has, as of 2017, won eight Don Carlos Palanca Awards for plays and short stories. He was also recognized as Best Playwright in Short + Sweet Manila 2014 for his entry, Death in Ten Minutes. Two of his children's short stories, Ang Ampalaya sa Pinggan ni Peepo and Sa Tapat ng Tindahan ni Mang Teban, have been published under Lampara Books. His plays have been staged in different high schools and universities, as well as in international theatre festivals. Abridgments of his plays, The Floret Road and exesanonymous.com, were staged at the awards nights of the 66th and 67th Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards.

Joem's writing workshops are distinct from both the “great-writers” approach (which relies on the teacher heavily criticizing the students’ work) and the “therapeutic” approach (which focuses merely on proliferation). He believes in “writing by design,” wherein the writer is trained to anticipate and predict a reader’s probable response to the text based on the writer’s understanding of reality and language. The goal of his workshop is for the student writer to gain the ability to put ideas into paper and to see how the choice and organization of language fulfills the writer’s objective.

Joy Antonio (Communications Manager)

A marketer by training, Joy saw greater potential in Joem's original (and lone) fiction writing course. She created and has been building the Storywriting School brand and its communication channels. Joy is also Joem's wife and number one fan.